"Medical records going online" by Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar, Associated Press | July 14, 2010
WASHINGTON — The Obama administration rolled out an ambitious five-year plan yesterday for moving doctors and hospitals to computerized medical records, promising greater safety for patients and lower costs.
Promises, promises.
Starting next year, doctors’ offices and hospitals can get federal money to help defray the costs of the systems, which can run to millions of dollars for hospitals. Providers who don’t comply by 2015 will face cuts in Medicare payments.
I'm sick of the federal and state extortion, too.
It is OUR MONEY and WE WANT HEALTH CARE, not wars!
Federal incentive payments for doctors and hospitals to buy computerized systems could reach $27 billion over 10 years, and that’s only a fraction of what technology vendors stand to take in.
But somehow this is supposed to save you money.
And CUI BONO?
It is hoped the investment will streamline the delivery of medical care, yielding long-run savings.
That is code for meaning there never will be anyway (without cuts in services).
Patients would receive the benefit of systems that can warn doctors before they make a mistake — prescribing a drug that could cause a severe reaction, for example.
Turn your head and cough, please.
And there is also the convenience of being able to access records online....
Now bend over.
Money for electronic records was included in the 2009 economic stimulus bill.
PFFFFFFT!!
Sorry, doc.
--more--"
Can I have my folder back, please?
"Hospital files with data of 800,000 are missing" by Martin Finucane and Kay Lazar, Globe Staff | July 20, 2010
Computer files from South Shore Hospital that contain personal information for about 800,000 people may have been lost when they were shipped to a contractor to be destroyed, hospital officials announced yesterday.
The officials declined to identify the contractor, but said that an independent information security consulting firm has determined that specialized software, hardware, and technical knowledge would be required to open and decipher information in the files.
They also said they had no evidence that the information in those files had been improperly used by anyone....
The information was on back-up files headed for destruction because they were in a format the hospital said it no longer used. Based on the investigation so far, the hospital said the files contained information on patients, employees, physicians, volunteers, donors, and other business partners associated with South Shore between Jan. 1, 1996, and Jan. 6 of this year.
The files may have included names, addresses, phone numbers, dates of birth, Social Security numbers, driver’s license numbers, medical record numbers, patient numbers, health plan information, dates of service, diagnoses, treatments relating to hospital and home health care visits, and other personal information....
Yeah, let's get those records on-line.
